July 09, 2013

Hours of teenagers drinking, including two cases of stolen beer, ended with a multi-vehicle wreck of such force that four people standing by the side of the road were thrown about 60 yards, killing them.

Tarrant County Sheriff Dee Anderson reported Tuesday that alcohol and speed were the main factors in the June 15 collisions on Burleson-Retta Road.

The 16-year-old driver of a red Ford F350 pickup that started the chain reaction of crashes had a blood-alcohol content of 0.24, three times the legal limit, Anderson said. His truck was traveling 68 mph to 70 mph, he said.

“He was extremely intoxicated, obviously,” Anderson said of the driver. “It is a something that was completely preventable. Something that, because a group of people made some very, very bad decisions, four totally innocent people lost their lives.